


mornings are for crosswords and confessions

by eg1701



Series: 90s reddie for the soul [1]
Category: IT (1990)
Genre: Breakfast, Eddie Kaspbrak Lives, First Kiss, Inner Dialogue, M/M, Not Canon Compliant, Self-Esteem Issues, projecting? moi?, richie is a little self deprecating
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-22
Updated: 2020-06-22
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:54:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,584
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24864874
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eg1701/pseuds/eg1701
Summary: Richie confesses his feelings over breakfast.
Relationships: Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier
Series: 90s reddie for the soul [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1800730
Comments: 6
Kudos: 141





	mornings are for crosswords and confessions

**Author's Note:**

> I have been soft about 1990 Reddie from the iconic and superb miniseries for *checks watch* like three weeks straight and so this was only a matter of time. 90s Eddie has my entire heart and is my reason for everything.
> 
> i'm not even a stranger things stan but you wouldn't be able to tell that from the title of this  
> 
> 
> stan isn't like, physically present in this fic, nor is he mentioned at all but just know he's alive and well because he's my boy

In the early morning, Richie thought Eddie looked like some renaissance painting, by one of the old masters. The sunlight made his hair golden, his eyes a deep brown. Like early morning coffee or hot chocolate. Richie fought the strong urge to each over and tuck a strand of hair behind his ear, to drag a finger across the lines of his cheeks, his jaw. Once, in a fairly terrible play he'd been in in college, he'd played an artist who had gone on great lengths about his muse. Richie hadn't ever really understood that kind of devotion until recently. Eddie was the kind of person that should be sculpted and painted and loved. And Richie hoped that maybe he could be the one to do it. If Eddie would let him.  


The breakfast table was warm from the sun, and he watched Eddie fill in the morning crossword puzzle, glasses on the tip of his nose. Richie knew he was being a creep, staring as he was, but he had to. He had to assure himself this wasn’t a dream. If he looked away, when he looked back, the other seat would be empty, like so many mornings before. He didn’t want Eddie to disappear. This seemed too good to be true.  


The months since Eddie had moved in had been wonderful. Better than anything really.  


There was now someone else in his space, who helped him take care of the house, who made sure he ate enough for breakfast (Richie’s usual breakfast of a cup of coffee was not flying with Eddie) and that he went to bed at some point.  


It was weird, having somebody who cared about his health and well being. Richie wasn’t _incapable_ of taking care of himself, but he knew he let some things fall by the wayside. He hadn’t cared too much. But Eddie cared. Cared about him, about where he was and what he did. Not in an annoying way, not overbearing. He just wanted to know that Richie was alright.  


“You’re staring at me,” Eddie said, looking up suddenly, setting his pen down. Richie picked up his coffee to give his hands something to do, to try and make himself look natural, “What’s up?”  


“I need to tell you something,” Richie said, though for the life of him he couldn’t imagine why. He had no plans to tell Eddie this now but the words were spilling out before he could hold them back, “And you have to promise me not to….flip out.”  


Eddie frowned, “Are you sick? I told you you smoked too much as a kid and I know you’ve quit doing anything else but it’s not good for you to-”  


Richie held up a hand, “I’m not sick. In fact I’m probably in better shape than I’ve been in thirty years. Amazing what solid meals and actual sleep will do for you.”  


Eddie laughed, “I told you.”  


“But that’s not it. I’m fine. Promise me you’ll stay cool.  


“Alright,” Eddie said warily, “I promise Rich.”  


“It’s only...I love you.”  


“I love you too,” Eddie said softly, “You know that. I love you all so much.”  


Richie sighed, “That’s, I mean, that’s not really what I meant.”  


Eddie cocked his head, waiting for Richie to explain. This was going poorly. And he should just shut up. BS his way through this and then go to the studio and never bring it up again. Eddie wouldn’t ask for a real explanation. Wouldn’t expect him to explain if he didn’t want to.  


But he _wanted_ Eddie to know. Maybe it would mess things up but he needed to tell him anyway. He was so tired of hiding it. The man slept across the hall, cooked dinner for them, and was always within touching distance it seemed. He didn’t know how many more nights he could sit on the sofa, Eddie next to him, their legs pressed together, before he exploded.  


“I mean it differently. I mean I’m in love with you. And I have been...probably since we were kids I don’t know. It took me too long to figure it out. And maybe this is going to mess everything up and you’ll want to move out because you think I’m a creep or whatever but I just wanted you to know because-”  


“Beep-beep Richie,” Eddie said softly. Not unkindly though. He thought it was more for his benefit than Eddie’s. Richie had a habit of talking himself into a hole.  


Richie shut up.  


Waited.  


He wanted to joke to break the tension, to say something or other to loosen up, but he kept his mouth shut. This was not the time for jokes. He didn’t want Eddie to get the impression that he was anything but deadly serious.  


He watched Eddie shut the newspaper, watched him push his glasses back up and watched him stand. Richie braced for him to walk out of the room, to do _something _besides be silent. He hated the silence. He had always hated the silence. Silence bred thoughts he didn’t want to think. If someone was talking he wouldn’t be alone with them.  
__

__Eddie came over, bent down a little, took Richie’s face in his hands, and kissed him.  
_ _

__This, Richie had not been prepared for. And after freezing for half a second, he kissed back, his hand finding its way into Eddie’s hair, the other around his waist.  
_ _

__“Shoulda said something before,” Eddie said, pulling back slightly to look at him, and Richie pulled him down into his lap instead of replying. Eddie laughed, wrapped his arms around Richie and stayed there for a moment, head on his chest. Richie wondered if Eddie could hear how fast his heart was beating, “Big pining loser. I’ve been here four months.”  
_ _

__Richie shook his head, “Too chicken I guess.”  
_ _

__“Guess so,” Eddie smiled, “But I don’t think you’re chicken though. I think you’re real brave. And I love you too.”  
_ _

__“You do?” Richie hated how childish he sounded, but he couldn’t believe it.  
_ _

__Eddie was here, with him, _loved_ him. Suddenly everything from the past three decades hardly mattered. Nothing he did could compare to this.  
_ _

__This was the real beginning.  
_ _

__“I meant what I said. I never wanted to be with anybody I didn’t love. But I do love you. And maybe I did as a kid. I don’t know. But you opened your home to me, saved my damn life in the sewers. I guess it’s a shame it took almost dying for me to see you, really see you. But I do now. I see you Richie Tozier.”  
_ _

__“You do?” Richie smirked, “You like what you see?”  
_ _

__Eddie pressed a kiss to the tip of his nose, “Not half bad. Little dorky looking around the face, but that’s the glasses I think.”  
_ _

__Richie rolled his eyes, “Oh thanks.”  
_ _

__“You’re going to be late,” Eddie said suddenly, having glanced at the time, “You should go.”  
_ _

__“Aw come on.” He tightened his grip on Eddie, “Nothing there compares to this. They’d probably understand if they had their own Eddie at home.”  
_ _

__It was Eddie’s turn to roll his eyes, and he stood up, sliding out of Richie’s arms with only minor trouble and he straightened his shirt, “Go on. Finish your breakfast so you aren’t late. I’ll be here when you get home.”  
_ _

__A small part of Richie’s brain had been worried about that. Maybe this was too much to lay at Eddie’s feet this early. The past few months had been full of revelations. For all of them. Maybe he should have waited. Would it overwhelm Eddie, to admit to loving him when Eddie had simply never been in the position before? Would it scare him off?  
_ _

__Richie knew he’d probably scared off people before. He could be clingy. He knew it. And there had been so many mornings where he had woken up alone, even though he hadn’t gone to bed alone. For a long time he had thought this was alright, but he didn’t ever want to wake up alone, not when Eddie was the other option.  
_ _

__“Hey,” Eddie tilted his face up gently, jolting him out of his thoughts, “What’s going on in that big head of yours?”  
_ _

__Richie took Eddie’s hand and kissed it, “Nothing.”  
_ _

__“I don’t buy that.”  
_ _

__“Just thinking. It doesn’t matter. I am going to be late, you’re right. Although I don’t know _how_ I am _ever_ going to get through the day when I know you’re here waiting for me. The others would be jealous if they knew I had the handsomest man in the world waiting for me at home.”  
_ _

__Eddie turned about six different shades of red, and sputtered out something that Richie thought was “stop that.”  
_ _

__“It’s true Eds my dear,” Richie said, downing half his now lukewarm coffee in one sip and standing up. He put his hands on Eddie’s shoulders and kissed his forehead, “I’d be jealous of me.”  
_ _

__“Get out of here you big dope,” Eddie was laughing though, and Richie felt his heart swell, “You pay attention at work and keep your mind out of the gutter.”  
_ _

__“No promises Spaghetti Man,” Richie kissed him again, “I love you.”  
_ _

__He didn’t think he would ever get tired of saying that. In fact, he would say it every time he had the chance.  
_ _

__He had twenty seven years to make up for.  
_ _

__“I love you too Richie.”  
_ _

__He thought maybe Eddie agreed._ _

**Author's Note:**

> thank you! come talk to me at feuillytheflorist on tumblr where i rotate through fandoms at an obscene speed. 
> 
> it's weird writing 90s reddie when 2019 reddie are *john mulaney voice* "do not fuck with me" and 1990s eddie in particular is "hey you could pour soup on my lap and i'd probably apologize to you" and i feel that.
> 
> what do y'all think? more 90s Reddie? more 90s losers? i have ideas to make this a series of one shots (i love series of one shots so much). everything i do is so self indulgent so i might as well lmao


End file.
